social climber
noun
: one who attempts to gain a higher social position or acceptance in fashionable society
social climbing
noun
Examples of social climber in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
There actually is something at stake for these women, which frees them up for a desperate kind of humor, in the vein of those plucky social climbers in a screwball comedy from an earlier era.
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Alissa Wilkinson, New York Times, 1 May 2025
From the dynastic Dupree family to the conniving social climbers bent on usurping their place at the top of the social hierarchy, the historic new daytime drama is all about its characters.
—Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 7 Mar. 2025
Where Huang’s wardrobe for Oz emphasizes his position as a clumsy social climber, aspiring to classic mafia masculinity but too crass to fit in with the old-money elite, Sofia represents a different kind of outsider.
—Gavia Baker-Whitelaw, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2024
Smith starred as Joyce Chilvers, a small-town social climber in postwar Northern England whose hunger to be accepted by the elite locals isn’t helped by her dotty mother nor her underachieving podiatrist husband Gilbert, played by Michael Palin.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Sep. 2024
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Alissa Wilkinson, New York Times, 1 May 2025
From the dynastic Dupree family to the conniving social climbers bent on usurping their place at the top of the social hierarchy, the historic new daytime drama is all about its characters.
—Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 7 Mar. 2025
Where Huang’s wardrobe for Oz emphasizes his position as a clumsy social climber, aspiring to classic mafia masculinity but too crass to fit in with the old-money elite, Sofia represents a different kind of outsider.
—Gavia Baker-Whitelaw, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2024
Smith starred as Joyce Chilvers, a small-town social climber in postwar Northern England whose hunger to be accepted by the elite locals isn’t helped by her dotty mother nor her underachieving podiatrist husband Gilbert, played by Michael Palin.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for social climber
Cite this Entry
“Social climber.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/social%20climber. Accessed 6 Jul. 2025.
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